Pride and Prejudice

I happened to meet a Chitrali girl a couple of days back: compactly
wrapped in her plain, batiste, black shawl, and her eyes always
looking down. She seemed to be quite introverted and diffident to
me. At first glance, she was like a fish out of water.
Intrigued by her novelty and the tales heard about their lifestyle,
I was compelled to become acquainted with her. To my surprise, the
misconception about them being conservative became a heap of mud
the instant she started expressing her thoughts. I was greatly
moved by her confidence, well-awareness and spirit --- unlike what
is usually thought of her people. Asking her about her experience
in Lahore, she replied quite plainly and relaxed.

A bit startled and uncertain I was after her prompt reply (which
seems to be conservative but was not, rather based on religious
morality if thought of sensibly).

Feeling her to be a bit uncomfortable on the velvety, pliable sofa,
I asked her to lie down on the bed if she wants to.

"HUM SB FARSH PER BETHTAY HA, UPER NAHIN BETHTAY"

She was her unembarrassed by her reply. That made me speechless one
more time (as being the host I could not ask her to sit on the
floor).

As luminant as her name, "Roshan Bano," I wanted to think that law
was her career. As I progressed further, it rendered me to be more
optimistic about her. Vivid in her thoughts, lucid inside out,
naive deep down to her soul, unmasked, she was an embodiment of
uprightness and candor. She was unlike us who are translucent
people.

Being rational, the notion I want to depict is that the orthodox
approach towards them should now be changed. People living in upper
northern Pakistan are inflicted by our prejudice. We think of them
as backward and hidebound people. However, they are conformists,
not extremists. People with middle of the road thoughts, neither
too liberal nor too conservative. They are balanced people,
restricted by some petty rules. They lead life as mediocre: firmly
adherent to the radical principles of Islam. They live in a
parallel: heading from the dark valley of ignorance towards the
highway of awareness. If they channel their energies in a positive
direction, their morality, iron will and genuineness, they will
surpass the rest.

Honestly speaking, after she left and I re-evaluated my own self, I
did not deem myself on par with her. Despite better qualification,
aptitude and skills, Ifelt INFERIOR to her.

This reminded me of nothing other than

"ALL MANKIND IS FROM ADAM AND EVE, AN ARAB HAS NO SUPERIORITY
OVER A NON-ARAB NOR A NON-ARAB HAS ANY SUPERIORITY OVERAN ARAB; ALSO A WHITE HAS NO SUPERIORITY OVER BLACK NOR A BLACK
HAS ANY SUPERIORITY OVER WHITE EXCEPT BY PIETY AND GOODACTIONS"

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